Extraction optimization by response surface methodology: Purification and characterization of phytosterol from sugarcane (Saccharum officinarum L .) rind

Bioactive compounds as an alternative for the sugarcane industry: Towards an integrative approach

Here, a comprehensive review of sugarcane industrialization and its relationship with bioactive compounds (BCs) detected in various products and by-products generated during its processing is presented. Furthermore, it is discussed how these compounds have revealed important antioxidant, antineoplastic, antidiabetic, and antimicrobial activities. From this bibliographic research highlights the significance of two types of BCs of natural origin (phenolic compounds (PCs) and terpenoids) and a group of compounds synthesized during industrial transformation processes (Maillard reaction products (MRPs)). It was found that most of the studies about the BCs from sugarcane have been conducted by identifying, isolating, and analyzing ones or a few compounds at a specific period, this being a conventional approach. However, given the complexity of the synthesis processes of all these BCs and the biological activities they can manifest in a specific biological context, novel approaches are needed to address these analyses holistically. To overcome this challenge, integrating massive and multiscale methods, such as omics sciences, seems necessary to enrich these studies. This work is intended to contribute to the state of the art that could support future research about the exploration, characterization, or evaluation of different bioactive molecules from sugarcane and its derivatives.

Extraction and Quantitation of Phytosterols from Edible Brown Seaweeds: Optimization, Validation, and Application

Brown seaweeds are known as important marine food sources, from which phytosterols have been recognized as functional food components with multiple health-beneficial effects. However, studies on phytosterol extraction and quantitation from edible brown seaweeds are limited. In the present work, extraction methods for seaweed phytosterols were compared and optimized by one-factor-at-one-time method and response surface methodology. Moreover, the quantitation method of total sterols and major sterol components, including fucosterol, saringosterol, and ostreasterol, was established and validated using ¹H NMR. Furthermore, the developed extraction and determination methods were applied to investigate three common edible seaweeds from Japan (Hijiki, Wakame, and Kombu). As a result, the finally optimized conditions were ultrasound-assisted extraction with CHCl₃-MeOH 2:3 for 15 min followed by saponification with 1.65 mL of 1.85 M KOH for 14.5 h. Based on the developed methods, phytosterols in three seaweeds were compared, and Hijiki showed an abundant total sterol amount (2.601 ± 0.171 mg/g DW), significantly higher than Wakame (1.845 ± 0.137 mg/g DW) and Kombu (1.171 ± 0.243 mg/g DW). Notably, the composition of the sterol components varied in different seaweeds. These findings might help the nutritional investigation and functional food development concerning phytosterols from seaweeds.

Phytosterols extraction from hickory (Carya cathayensis Sarg.) husk with a green direct citric acid hydrolysis extraction method

This study investigated the direct citric acid hydrolysis extraction method to optimize phytosterols extraction from hickory husk. Single factor experiments followed by a three-level three-factor Box-Behnken experiments were performed. The optimal extraction parameters were determined as: pH of 2.0, liquid-to-solid ratio of 17.12: 1 mL/g, and temperature of 55.81 °C. Practical experiments were carried out in triplicate, and subsequently yielded phytosterols of 912.452 ± 17.452 μg/g DW, in good consistence with the predicted extraction yield of 902.874 μg/g DW. The conductivity of the extract was also found to play effective role under direct citric acid hydrolysis and recorded 36.30 ± 1.08 μs/cm at optimum extraction condition. β-Sitosterol stigmasterol, campsterol, ergosterol and lupeol were detected as main PSs and triterpenoids in hickory husk using UPLC-Triple-TOF/MS. Finally, the comparison between direct hydrolysis extraction and traditional solvent extraction showed that this new method was more effective and eco-friendlier to extract both free and conjugated phytosterols.

Effects of Stigmasterol and β-Sitosterol on Nonalcoholic Fatty Liver Disease in a Mouse Model: A Lipidomic Analysis

To study the effects of stigmasterol and β-sitosterol on high-fat Western diet (HFWD)-induced nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), lipidomic analyses were conducted in liver samples collected after 33 weeks of the treatment. Principal component analysis showed these phytosterols were effective in protecting against HFWD-induced NAFLD. Orthogonal projections to latent structures-discriminate analysis (OPLS-DA) and S-plots showed that triacylglycerols (TGs), phosphatidylcholines, cholesteryl esters, diacylglycerols, and free fatty acids (FFAs) were the major lipid species contributing to these discriminations. The alleviation of NAFLD is mainly associated with decreases in hepatic cholesterol, TGs with polyunsaturated fatty acids, and alterations of free hepatic FFA. In conclusion, phytosterols, at a dose comparable to that suggested for humans by the FDA for the reduction of plasma cholesterol levels, are shown to protect against NAFLD in this long-term (33-week) study.

Simultaneous extraction and determination of free and conjugated phytosterols in tobacco

Acid hydrolysis and alkaline saponification were incorporated into a microwave-assisted extraction process for the simultaneous extraction of free and conjugated phytosterols from tobacco. The crude extract of the microwave-assisted extraction was purified by C18 solid-phase extraction and then determined by high-performance liquid chromatography. Phytosterols of cholesterol, ergosterol, stigmasterol, campesterol, and β-sitosterol were determined by chromatographic quantification. The multiple parameters of microwave-assisted extraction were optimized by a uniform design method. The optimal ratio of extraction ethanol solvent to tobacco mass was 30 mL/g. The microwave-assisted extraction acid hydrolysis was carried out in sulfuric acid medium by heating for 10 min at 55°C. The microwave-assisted extraction alkaline saponification was performed after adding excessive sodium hydroxide by heating another 10 min. The repeatability of the proposed method was acceptable with recoveries from 69.68 to 88.17% for the phytosterols. Five target phytosterols were all found in the tobacco samples, and the contents were significantly different in samples from different producing areas.

Extraction of organophosphorus pesticides by carbon-coated Fe3 O4 nanoparticles through response surface experimental design

In this paper, carbon-coated Fe3 O4 nanoparticles were successfully synthesized and used as a magnetic solid-phase extraction absorbent for the preconcentration and extraction of organophosphorus pesticides in environmental water samples. The carbon-coated Fe3 O4 nanoparticles were characterized by transmission electron microscopy, X-ray powder diffraction, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, and vibrating sample magnetometry. The determination of organophosphorus pesticides in water samples with carbon-coated Fe3 O4 nanoparticles was investigated by high-performance liquid chromatography with a diode array detector. Furthermore, the response surface model based on the central composite design was applied to quantitatively investigate the effect of some important variables influencing the extraction efficiency, such as pH, treatment time, amount of nanoparticle sorbents, and amount of salt and to find the optimized conditions providing the highest extraction efficiency. Under optimized conditions, the calibration curve was linear in the range of 0.5-15.0 ng/mL with a regression coefficient of 0.9948, 0.9958, and 0.9931 for fenitrothion, diazinon, and ethion, respectively. The obtained results showed that this analytical method would be useful for the analysis of fenitrothion, diazinon, and ethion in tap water with high precision and accuracy.